How to price pressure washing jobs without underquoting

Visit the property or ask for clear photos of every surface. Look for what will slow you down or change your method.

• Which surfaces: driveway, walkway, patio, deck, siding, fence, steps
• Material: concrete, pavers, natural stone, wood, composite, vinyl, brick
• Staining: dirt, moss and algae, oil, rust, tyre marks
• Water access and outdoor tap location
• Obstacles: vehicles, furniture, plants, drainage, nearby windows or electrical fixtures

Most flat surfaces are priced by area. Measure length × width for each section and add them up. Split irregular shapes into rectangles. For siding, multiply the wall length by its height, then subtract large openings like garage doors if you're not cleaning them. For fences and railings, linear length is often more practical than area.

Write each measurement on your notes so you can explain the price if a customer asks.

Concrete driveways and walkways are usually the fastest per square foot with a surface cleaner. Pavers may need joint care and, sometimes, re-sanding. Wood and composite decks need lower pressure and more care, so they take longer. House siding is usually soft-washed with cleaning solution rather than high pressure. Commercial surfaces like storefronts or parking areas may involve working around business hours and foot traffic.

Price each surface type separately so a quick driveway rate doesn't end up covering a slow deck.

Heavy staining, years of build-up, oil spots and moss can double the time on the same area. Use a simple difficulty adjustment — for example, standard, moderate and heavy — and add time accordingly. Hard-to-reach areas, steep slopes and lots of obstacles count too.

Track how long your own jobs take: how many square feet per hour you clean on each surface type, plus pre-treatment and rinse time. Use those rates instead of guessing. Count person-hours if you work with a helper.

Detergents, degreasers, surface treatments and sealers have a direct cost per job. Estimate how much you'll use for the area and condition. Add consumables like nozzles, hoses and surface-cleaner parts as a small per-job allowance.

Your pressure washer, surface cleaner, hoses, ladders, trailer and vehicle all wear out. A simple method: estimate what your equipment costs to replace and maintain each year, divide by the hours you expect to work, and add that hourly equipment cost to every job. Add fuel for the machine and the drive.

Unloading, connecting water, moving furniture, protecting plants and packing up can easily take 30–45 minutes on a small job. That time is part of the job, so price it in.

Because setup and travel are similar whether you wash a small patio or a full driveway, set a minimum charge. It makes sure small jobs still cover your fixed time. Many operators also offer a lower combined price when a customer adds a second surface on the same visit.

Overhead — insurance, phone, software, marketing, vehicle and admin time — has to be covered too. Build it into your hourly cost.

Then add profit. Remember the difference: markup is a percentage of cost, margin is a percentage of the selling price. To reach a target margin, divide cost by (1 − margin). For a 30% margin, divide cost by 0.70.

These numbers are made up for illustration. Use your own costs, rates and local market.

A two-car concrete driveway (about 600 sq ft) and a front walkway (about 80 sq ft), moderate staining with two oil spots. One operator.

• Cleaning time at about 300 sq ft per hour with moderate staining: about 2.3 hours
• Pre-treatment of oil spots and rinse: 0.5 hours
• Setup and pack-up: 0.5 hours
• Travel: 0.5 hours
• Total time: about 3.8 hours × $40 per hour labour = $152
• Chemicals and consumables: $20
• Equipment and fuel at $12 per hour: about $46
• Overhead at $10 per hour: $38
• Total cost: about $256
• Target margin of 30%: $256 ÷ 0.70 = about $366
• Rounded quote: $365 — driveway clean, walkway clean and oil spot treatment as separate lines, with sealing offered as an optional extra

Customers compare quotes, so make yours easy to understand.

• Each surface as its own line item with the area
• Pre-treatment or stain removal listed separately
• What's excluded (e.g. guaranteed removal of deep oil or rust stains)
• Optional extras like sealing
• Water access requirement and what the customer needs to move
• Weather note: the job may be rescheduled for rain
• Payment terms and how long the quote is valid

• Pricing only by area and ignoring condition
• Forgetting setup, pack-up and travel
• No minimum charge for small jobs
• Leaving out equipment wear and fuel
• Promising complete stain removal
• Using one rate for every surface type

In Laestan, save the services you sell — driveway clean, patio clean, siding wash, sealing — with your own prices, then add them to an estimate and adjust the quantity for each job. Customer records keep addresses and notes such as where the outdoor tap is. Accepted quotes become scheduled jobs, and on Pro and Business plans you can take Before and After photos that appear on the invoice your customer opens. Laestan doesn't measure surfaces for you — you enter your own quantities and prices.